Great Sister Diane may race closer to pace Friday

Great Sister Diane is moving back into the overnight ranks Friday at Gulfstream Park, but will meet some familiar stakes rivals. She goes in the seventh race and again faces Midnight Soiree and Bienville Street.

The trio meets over a mile on turf – the same conditions under which they tangled in the $60,000 In the Breeze on July 5 at Gulfstream. The race Friday is a second-level allowance for fillies and mares that carries an optional claiming price of $62,500.

Great Sister Diane ran second in the In the Breeze, closing from last to finish 4 1/2 lengths behind winner Belle Laura. Great Sister Diane was backing up from 1 1/8 miles and could sit a little closer to the pace Friday in her second straight start at a mile.

Great Sister Diane, who is a stakes winner over the local turf at Gulfstream, is owned by Robert Slack and trained by Rohan Crichton. She will break from post 6 under regular rider Miguel Vasquez.

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Midnight Soiree will break from post 2 in the field of eight Friday. She was third in the In the Breeze, finishing just a half-length behind Great Sister Diane. Midnight Soiree was a stakes winner over the Gulfstream turf earlier in her career, and Luca Panici, who was aboard for that win, reunites with her Friday.

Lisa Lewis trains Midnight Soiree, a daughter of Include who is a half-sister to a stakes winners Ciguaraya and Silver Time.

Bienville Street was fifth in the In the Breeze. She earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 76, which is just two points off the 78 earned by Great Sister Diane and Midnight Soiree. The Beyer is the best last-race turf number in the field Friday.

Bienville Street, who has placed in a pair of stakes races, will start from post 5.

The eighth race Friday brings together Florida-breds in a first-level allowance that carries an optional claiming price of $16,000. The race for 3-year-olds and up drew seven and will be run at a mile.

R U Lucky figures to start as a top contender off a third-place finish at this distance and level July 3 at Gulfstream. He met older rivals for the first time in that race, stalking the leaders and rallying from an outside post, which he again draws for Friday.

Edgard Zayas has the mount from post 7 for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr.

Allurstra, a four-time winner, also should get good support. He’s moving back into the Florida-bred ranks after running fourth against open foes in a $25,000 claiming race at a mile July 8 at Gulfstream.